Business Profile
What is the point of a website if it doesn’t improve your profit and consistently generate new business?
Tony Mackenzie, the business development director at Newbury-based Web on High, outlines his top tips for ensuring your website has the basics required to convert
visitors and produce real results during 2010
With a staggering 49 per cent of all businesses now being found for the first time using internet search engines, (Google in particular), ensuring that your marketing harnesses the power of the internet should be a major consideration in the growth and development plans for the majority of businesses.
An effective online strategy can transform a business, even in a downturn, if understood and planned correctly.
You may have been recently asking yourself the following questions:
* Just how much business is really out there for me?
* What is the growth potential for my business during 2010?
* Where is this new business going to come from?
There is actually a very simple and easy way to uncover exactly who is looking for your business and the numbers of potential clients or customers that are passing you by on a monthly basis because your current site has simply not been created with visibility or prominence in mind.
Go to Google and type the following phrase in to the main search bar: Google keyword tool. Open the first link that appears on the main page which should read ‘Google Adwords: Keyword Tool’. Then follow the on screen instructions in the main boxes that appear in the middle of the screen to identify the number of available individual searches conducted during a single month for phrases or words that relate to your core business activities.
For example, if your core business activity was to sell conservatories, then in the month of November 2009 there were 12,900 individual searches in the UK alone for the phrase “DIY conservatories” or using a more geographic based focus, there were 320 individual searches for the phrase “Berkshire conservatories”. Imagine the huge difference that having a well-constructed and prominent site could bring to your business. People are looking, but they simply may not be able to find you.
Tony’s top tips
When beginning to think about developing and creating a website, it is absolutely critical that certain design basics are adhered to, as your website has less than a few seconds to retain the attention of a prospective customer or partner once they find you.
Aspects such as design speed of page loading, textual positioning, colours, font, ease of navigation and placement of powerful sales images all play a major role in how someone will interact and interpret a site. There is no point in having a website that does not convert visitors to customers or orders because they do not like what they see or cannot find what they want.
Tony’s top five tips to help you
get the most from your website during 2010.
1. Plan and research before you
start. Before you commission a new site, or a rebuild of an existing one, ask yourself:
l Why do we actually have a
website?
l What value should it bring to our business?
l How will it bring that value?
l How will our measurement of success be calculated?
A well-developed and well posi- tioned website can drastically transform the profitability of any business in any market at any time (even in a recession). However, you must remember that all the pieces of the puzzle need to be in place for promo-tion of the site to be truly suc-cessful.
2. Your sales or service message
should be abundantly clear. Some 40 per cent of visitors to a well created and promoted website will arrive at pages other than its home page. Therefore, a clear and prominent sales message on every page is critical.
3. Get that first impression right.
It may be slightly clichéd but you really do only have one chance at creating a first impression. The average visi-tor will spend no more than four to seven seconds deciding whether they like your website and your business. Aesthetic design, having a clear sales message and speed of access are critical factors in captur-ing that all important enquiry or online order.
4. Avoid in-house techno-speak or
jargon. Use language on your website that all your prospec-tive customers will understand. Do not highlight what is important to you, highlight what is important to your customer.
5. Make it easy for a prospect to
progress. Effectively posi-tioned ‘Calls to action’ (CTAs) guide your prospective cus-tomer into making contact with you. That might be by downloading a form or initiating a telephone call by following links such as “click here to speak to an expert” etc. They help maximise the proportion of your prospects who will contact you and subsequently become customers. Companies that fail to adopt this impor-tant rule lose valuable prospective customer information and therefore sales opportunities.
A little bit about Web on High
Web on High was created in 1999 as a result of a vision that saw the internet as a truly powerful promotional and marketing tool for business. The company was adamant that the internet would be the most important method of business promotion and marketing for years to come – and time has proved it right.
Web on High’s core focus is based on search engine promotion in a bid to drive real business opportunities to client’s websites. Web on High was one of the first companies of its type in the UK to take this approach. Time has continued to prove the point and the company has continued to invest time and research into understanding the complex and ever-changing mechanics of search engine promotion. The team continually monitors changes being made by the major search engines as it affects the way Web on High promotes clients sites to them.
Behind the scenes, Web on High can boast a huge wealth of marketing and solid commercial experience as well as a variety of sound IT skills.
With a 25-strong team that includes designers, programmers, search engine consultants, customer account managers and experienced management, Web on High can ensure that clients get exactly what they what and that it is delivered with dedication, speed and professionalism.
What some of Web on High’s clients say
* “In November 2009 we had a 100 per cent increase in orders compared to the same period in 2008.
Web on High said it would take a little time and it has, but what a success.”
Peter Badger, managing director, Made To Measure Blinds
* “Web on High has consistently delivered on their promises. New business closed from the new website they created this year has paid for the initial investment made in their services in excess of 200 per cent, a fantastic investment.”
Kevin Davies, director, Capital Capture
* “Working with Web on High has
certainly been a good decision. Our site is rapidly gaining visibility and is a regular source of new leads and opportunities for us. A great partnership that is producing real results”
Adrian Pritchard, managing director, Dimension Group
* “After partnering with Web on High for over seven years, they approached me last year with some design changes based on increasing our websites conversion capability and overall user navigation. What a success a staggering increase in orders this summer by over 30 per cent.”
Melanie King, managing director, Easy2Name
Contact Web on High now
to find out how you can grow your business:
Telephone: (01635) 500840
Web: www.woh.co.uk
e-mail: ask@woh.co.uk
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